Exciting new airline routes from September 2023 and beyond
Now that the summer is officially behind us, the airline industry is already looking ahead to next summer, when scores of Americans are expected to jet off to popular destinations across the world.
That's the underlying theme across many of the airline route-network updates that were shared in September. Travelers typically start looking for flights as early as about a year before departure, so it makes sense for carriers to announce their summer plans this far in advance.
Historically, summertime sees a dramatic rise in demand for transatlantic travel, and multiple carriers are leaning into that trend.
Of course, there was a slew of other route updates in September, some noteworthy enough for a dedicated story and others that weren't. Either way, we've rounded up the highlights, so read on for the September route announcements you might've missed.
American Airlines
Even though September wasn't as splashy as American's August network update — which included its biggest transatlantic expansion since 2019 — the Fort Worth-based carrier kept busy.
The airline announced an all-new transcontinental route between Miami and Orange County, California, which covers one of the nation's most affluent catchment areas. The new service to John Wayne Airport (SNA) joins recently announced service from Miami to Portland, Oregon, and Sacramento.
Airlines don't usually publish splashy press releases when they're cutting routes, so it's worth mentioning that the carrier is pulling out of three routes in the coming months, as first seen in Cirium schedules:
- Austin to St. Louis.
- Philadelphia to Charlottesville, Virginia.
- Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, to Tampa.
Related:
Alaska Airlines
Alaska announced that it's adding a new route between Atlanta and San Diego.
Though San Diego is a base for the airline, Atlanta most definitely is not. When the airline announced the route, some aviation observers immediately commented that the new flight seemed aimed at Delta Air Lines, which operates a fortress hub in Atlanta and which has encroached upon Alaska's dominance in Seattle in recent years.
Alaska is no stranger to a turf war both with Delta and with other airlines — Alaska recently started new flights between San Diego and United Airlines' hub at Washington's Dulles International Airport — so it'll be interesting to see if and how Delta responds.
That wasn't the only interesting move that Alaska made. The carrier also scraped all domestic transcon red-eyes to the Northeast from its schedule between early January and mid-February. The carrier says that "aircraft are being moved around and utilized for leisure markets during that timeframe."
Related:
Breeze Airways
Breeze Airways, the latest brainchild from serial airline entrepreneur David Neeleman, is expanding once again.
This time, the carrier is opening a new outstation in Springfield, its first city in Illinois. It'll start flying to Tampa and Orlando later this year.
Additionally, the airline is adding new service to Plattsburgh International Airport (PBG), which is located near Montreal along the Canadian border. This new service to Orlando might appeal to Canadians looking for discounted flights to the theme park capital of the world.
Finally, Breeze is also adding service from Portland, Maine, to Fort Myers, Florida.
Related:
- Breeze triples down on Florida and adds new routes — and teases international destinations
- Breeze Airways adds 2 routes and a new state to its map
Delta Air Lines
Delta stole the show in September. The airline just unveiled an exciting expansion for next summer, which is poised to become its busiest transatlantic season yet.
The airline is adding new service from New York to Naples, Italy, and to Munich, as well as resuming a handful of routes and expanding service on some existing ones.
Not mentioned as part of the announcement is that Delta will stop flying from Atlanta to Dusseldorf, Germany, and it won't launch service from Portland, Oregon, to Seoul or Tokyo as originally planned.
Delta isn't just banking on a busy transatlantic summer. The airline also unveiled a slew of new domestic routes to popular summer destinations, such as Anchorage, Alaska; Aspen, Colorado; and the California cities of Burbank and Santa Barbara.
Related:
- Delta unveils 2 new flights, 11 expanded routes in largest-ever transatlantic schedule
- Delta announces 3 new flights, 11 expanded routes for next summer
Frontier Airlines
As one of the nation's largest budget airlines, Frontier is no stranger to chasing demand in every season.
During the winter, that usually means pointing planes to warm-weather destinations such as Florida, Mexico and the Caribbean.
Indeed, that's exactly what Frontier is doing with the addition of 14 new routes, half of which are returning from before the pandemic.
You'll find new routes to cities such as Cancun, Fort Myers, Tampa and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
Related:
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian didn't announce any new routes in September, but it did drop some exciting news: the launch date for its Boeing 787 Dreamliner service.
Beginning April 15, 2024, Hawaiian will start flying its 787s from Honolulu to San Francisco. The 787 ushers in a new era for the carrier's onboard experience with an upgraded business-class product and a refreshed economy cabin.
Related:
JetBlue Airways
JetBlue didn't make many network-related headlines in September, but it did file plans to stop serving Cuba this month due to low demand.
JSX
JSX, popular for its shared private jet experience that departs from FBOs (fixed-base operators), is moving its operations in San Diego.
The carrier will stop serving San Diego International Airport (SAN) and move to McClellan-Palomar Airport (CLD) in Carlsbad, California, beginning Oct. 5. The carrier will continue to fly to Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) and Taos Regional Airport (TSM) from CLD after moving.
Spirit Airlines
New Yorkers have reason to rejoice, even if they don't typically fly with Spirit Airlines. The carrier quietly filed plans to start service from LaGuardia Airport (LGA) to both Atlanta and West Palm Beach, Florida, during the winter season.
Spirit's new service to West Palm Beach should be especially exciting since this route has historically seen high fares during peak travel periods. Only Delta and JetBlue currently operate in this market.
Meanwhile, Spirit is entering a crowded market from New York to Atlanta — Delta, Frontier, JetBlue and Southwest Airlines all already fly between these cities.
Avianca
Avianca is adding three new U.S. routes in December. This includes new service from Oakland, California (a new city for the airline), to San Salvador, El Salvador, as well as service from New York to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and from Chicago to Guatemala.
Note that these routes will only be flown during the peak holiday period from December to early January.
Condor
San Antonio scored a big win this month with its first flights to Europe.
Condor Airlines will begin flying seasonal flights to Frankfurt on May 17, 2024. Condor will use its flagship Airbus A330-900neo on the route, which offers a top-notch business-class experience.
If you're not familiar, Condor is a German leisure carrier that's been trying to reinvent itself after years of having its strategy dictated by larger airline investors, such as Lufthansa and the now-defunct Thomas Cook Group.
San Antonio has been itching for transatlantic service for years, and the city's mayor said that "this a spectacular win for San Antonio."
Related:
Lufthansa Group
Speaking of German carriers, the Lufthansa Group isn't resting on its laurels. The group announced a major U.S. expansion in September, which will kick off just in time for the summer 2024 season.
This includes two new Lufthansa destinations: Raleigh-Durham and Minneapolis, both of which will be served from Frankfurt. Additionally, Lufthansa will launch a new flight from Seattle to Munich.
The carrier will also debut the popular Airbus A380 this upcoming summer from Munich to Washington Dulles.
Swiss will also commence flights from Zurich to Washington Dulles on March 28, 2024, followed by new flights from Zurich to Toronto commencing May 10, 2024.
Lufthansa is also adding additional frequencies and upgauging certain U.S. routes, and you can read about all the updates below.
Related:
Norse Atlantic
Norse Atlantic Airways, one of Europe's new low-cost carriers, announced earlier this month that it'll connect Los Angeles with Paris starting May 1, 2024.
The airline is entering a crowded market — Air France, Delta and Air Tahiti Nui already fly between these two cities — so it'll be interesting to see how Norse fares.
With one-way tickets starting at $279, Norse offers some very attractive introductory rates, but long-haul flights aren't cheap to operate. Even if you don't fly with Norse, at least the carrier's presence should cause the incumbents to lower their fares.
Related:
Starlux
Starlux Airlines is a new luxury carrier based in Taiwan that started flying to Los Angeles earlier this year. And beginning in December, you'll start seeing Starlux's sleek Airbus A350s flying to San Francisco.
The carrier has already received rave reviews from flyers, myself included, for its top-notch onboard experience, and the airline has a nascent partnership with Alaska Airlines that includes mileage redemptions (though the standard rates aren't especially attractive).
Starlux flies to a slew of destinations in the Asia-Pacific region, so even if Taiwan isn't your final destination, this is a route that you don't want to miss.
VivaAerobus
VivaAerobus, one of Mexico's ultra-low-cost giants, announced six new routes to the U.S. from Monterrey, Mexico. The new destinations are Austin, Denver, Miami, New York, Oakland and Orlando.
As we look toward October and beyond, expect to see many new routes between the U.S. and Mexico. That's because the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration just upgraded Mexico's aviation safety designation to Category 1, which means that Mexican carriers can once again add new routes to the U.S.
On the heels of the announcement, Aeromexico and Volaris are expected to announce new U.S. routes in the coming weeks.
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Annual Fee
Recommended Credit
Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits.Pros
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- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
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- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
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- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.
Rewards Rate
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 4X | Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year. |
| 3X | Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com. |
| 2X | Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com. |
| 1X | Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. |
Intro Offer
You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after spending $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer.As High As 100,000 points. Find Out Your Offer.Annual Fee
$325Recommended Credit
Credit ranges are a variation of FICO® Score 8, one of many types of credit scores lenders may use when considering your credit card application.Excellent to Good
Why We Chose It
There’s a lot to love about the Amex Gold. It’s a fan favorite thanks to its fantastic bonus-earning rates at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. If you’re hitting the skies soon, you’ll also earn bonus Membership Rewards points on travel. Paired with up to $120 in Uber Cash annually (for U.S. Uber rides or Uber Eats orders, card must be added to Uber app and you can redeem with any Amex card), up to $120 in annual dining statement credits to be used with eligible partners, an up to $84 Dunkin’ credit each year at U.S. Dunkin Donuts and an up to $100 Resy credit annually, there’s no reason that foodies shouldn’t add the Amex Gold to their wallet. These benefits alone are worth more than $400, which offsets the $325 annual fee on the Amex Gold card. Enrollment is required for select benefits.Pros
- 4 points per dollar spent on dining at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on the first $50,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter and $25,000 in purchases per calendar year; then 1 point per dollar spent thereafter, respectively)
- 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with the airline or with amextravel.com
- Packed with credits foodies will enjoy
- Solid welcome bonus
Cons
- Not as useful for those living outside the U.S.
- Some may have trouble using Uber and other dining credits
- You may be eligible for as high as 100,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Welcome offers vary and you may not be eligible for an offer. Apply to know if you’re approved and find out your exact welcome offer amount – all with no credit score impact. If you’re approved and choose to accept the Card, your score may be impacted.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on purchases at restaurants worldwide, on up to $50,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
- Earn 3X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines or on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels and other eligible purchases booked on AmexTravel.com.
- Earn 1X Membership Rewards® point per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
- $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and get $10 in Uber Cash each month to use on orders and rides in the U.S. when you select an American Express Card for your transaction. That’s up to $120 Uber Cash annually. Plus, after using your Uber Cash, use your Card to earn 4X Membership Rewards® points for Uber Eats purchases made with restaurants or U.S. supermarkets. Point caps and terms apply.
- $84 Dunkin' Credit: With the $84 Dunkin' Credit, you can earn up to $7 in monthly statement credits after you enroll and pay with the American Express® Gold Card at U.S. Dunkin' locations. Enrollment is required to receive this benefit.
- $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings, sweet or savory, with the $120 Dining Credit. Earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, and Five Guys. Enrollment required.
- Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- Annual Fee is $325.
- Terms Apply.